Hello, Buenos Aires! (8/10)

It wasn't exactly a whim, we were invited. Andres and Priscilla invited us to spend the weekend with them in Argentina. Andres takes trips there frequently for his work, and offered to be our guide. It was an opportunity to celebrate our anniversary on a once-in-a-lifetime trip. We had heard so much about Buenos Aires and we love spending time with our friends, we didn't want to pass up this opportunity.


It's tempting to compare Buenos Aires to Santiago, but they just so different. There were many more tourists, and lots more English in the environment. Lots of people openly doted on Benjamin, and that seems to be a norm. Driving was SCARY!!! And pedestrians DON'T have the right of way. Beef, leather, and grilling are standards. Everything is geared to a late nightlife. So some shops open later and others close for a couple hours in the afternoon. Architecture was incredible and very European. We had several close encounters with begging children, making me feel like a prince among paupers at times. But, we are in many ways, so it was OK.

We flew Thursday night after work, so we had all of Friday to look around. We visited the Recoleta district of Buenons Aires where there is an old "Bisilica de Pilar" church, monastary museum and cemetery. Churches like this are just too beautiful to be described. The museum contains paintings, garments and relics (including bones) of saints and monks associated with the church. The cemetery was an architectural wonder all its own. Many monuments, tombs and cripts that contain famous Argentinians also held underground riches. Our tour made a special stop at the tomb of Eva Peron. Born of poverty, she married well and became a president's wife, never forgetting her own history and giving generously in many ways to the lower classes. This may sound creepy (and it was) but it was really very interesting.






Later, we walked along the Rio de la Plata in the Puerta Madero district. We saw a memorial to the Argentinian who liberated Chile, General San Martin in the Metropolitan Cathedral. We saw the Congreso, Plaza de Mayo, and the Casa Rosada (the House of National Government). For dinner, Deb and I had "bife de churriso", a thick, Argentinian steak cooked over the grill. And we walked down the pedestrian Florida Avenue to get ice cream (Benjamin's choice). And we even had enough energy to swim and sit in a hot tub at the end of the day.